One more sanity check for data presented in the WDFW draft Plan to Close Puget Sound to Recreational Fishing;

The average weight of harbor seals in Puget Sound is approximately 63 kg (140 pounds) and daily food consumption rates are approximately 4 % of body weight. <this works out to 5.6 pounds per day> page 34 draft PSRCP from WDFW

Adult harbor seals eat 5% to 6% of their body weight per day, about 4.5 to 8.2 kg (10-18 lb.).
Sea world fact sheet <http://www.seaworld.org/infobooks/HarborSeal/hsdiet.html>

NOAA data indicates Puget Sound harbor seals, on average, consume 8.7 pounds per day.

Derived from these NOAA publications;
Harbor seal consumption;
http://www.nwfsc.noaa.gov/publications/techmemos/tm45/risk.htm
1993 Harbor Seal Population;
http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/Quarterly/ond2002/ond02feature.pdf
(table 1 page 6)



If you think closing of Puget Sound because of rockfish is an extremest viewpoint,
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE read this article and reconsider.

"The (MPA) law was passed after experts said catches of some species, including cod and rockfish, had fallen by as much as 95% in recent decades. Regulations limiting the number of fish that can be caught have failed to stave off the decline. Marine scientists fear it could lead to a collapse of marine life."

Link to LA Times Article